Blog posts should be 250-300 words and are due by the beginning of class. I recommend writing them in a word processor, then copying and pasting into a post on your discussion board. Some assignments will ask several questions; they’re there to make it clearer what I’m asking and what kind of response I’m looking for, but there’s no need to answer each question individually. Answer in a way that generally follows the assignment and makes sense to you. *Dates are dates due.*
Wednesday, December 7
Looking back to the beginning of the course, how has your view of writing changed? How has your view of your own writing changed? Has the course been what you expected?
Wednesday, November 30 What do you think about the assigned books for the course? Which one do you find most and least helpful, and why? How have they helped you in the course, or if they haven't, why not? As a student, would you recommend that I assign these books again for my class in the spring?
Saturday, November 12 Write an argument persuading the instructor (me) that I should cancel class next Friday, instead of introducing the revision assignment. If I find enough of the arguments persuasive, I will cancel class. (Arguments will be judged solely on the basis of whether I find them persuasive.)
Monday, November 7Evaluate your work in the course so far. How do you think your writing has improved? Where are you struggling? What would you like to work on, or learn about, that we haven't discussed yet?
Wednesday, November 2 Select a print source from the library catalogue (book, journal article, map, etc.) that could be useful to you for the current paper or for your own interests. Take a friend with you to the library where the book is kept, and have your friend time you while you do the following: look up the book's call number and location; go and find the book; bring it back to the desk; and check it out. Your blog post should recount the experience and reflect on how it went, and of course, how long it took.
Wednesday, October 26 How have you been organizing and keeping track of the information you're gathering? How have your views on your topic changed since you started investigating?
Wednesday, October 19
Free topic: write about something that's been on your mind lately.
Friday, October 14 Take the description of your room that you wrote-for-five last Friday, and extend it to 300 words. Revise the description so that it creates some kind of mood for the reader: homey/comforting, funny, intriguing, sad, disgusting, terrifying, or whatever you want. Enjoy. Friday, October 7Writing Exercise: Summarize the story you intend to tell in your narrative paper. The summary should be complete, and fall between 250 and 350 words. Wednesday, October 5 Free topic: write about something that's been on your mind lately. This should not be just a stream-of-consciousness rant (unless it'll be an exceptionally good one), but a considered exploration of whatever-it-is that you're writing about. Have fun.
Wednesday, September 28 How has the paper been going? What have you found easy or challenging? How has writing this paper been different from writing the evaluation? (Feel free to complain if you want to.) Friday, September 23 Revise your personal page to be more informative, more interesting, and/or more representative of your personality and ideas. If your page is already expanded and informative, rewrite text, reconsider pictures, rearrange things, add quotes, links, videos, etc. (if you want, you can even make it more concise). If your page is brief and simple, expand and elaborate it. Explore your own style and interests. Every personal page should be at least one screen-length long, and include at least one non-text item (picture, video, cartoon, link, etc.).
Thursday, September 15 (by 7 pm, so I can read them before class on Friday) What do you think about moving all the material from the website onto the wiki? Would it make things easier for you, and if so, how? What would you like to see on the wiki, in terms of sections, pages, structure, materials, etc? What would you find helpful, or interesting? Give whatever input or ideas you want to offer.
Wednesday, September 14 Go to the Palmer Art Museum. Select a work of art that catches your attention, and examine its rhetoric. How is the artist trying to affect you, and how is he/she achieving that effect?
Friday, September 9 How has the paper been going so far? What have you found easy or challenging? How has writing this paper been different from what you’re used to?
Friday, September 2 Talk about your first two weeks of the semester. How have things been going? What has surprised you?
Monday, August 29 What is your history with writing? What have you had trouble with? What have been your strengths? What do you most want to improve in your writing, or what do you most want to learn in this course?
ENGLISH 15 BLOG ASSIGNMENTS
Blog posts should be 250-300 words and are due by the beginning of class. I recommend writing them in a word processor, then copying and pasting into a post on your discussion board. Some assignments will ask several questions; they’re there to make it clearer what I’m asking and what kind of response I’m looking for, but there’s no need to answer each question individually. Answer in a way that generally follows the assignment and makes sense to you. *Dates are dates due.*
Wednesday, December 7
Looking back to the beginning of the course, how has your view of writing changed? How has your view of your own writing changed? Has the course been what you expected?
Wednesday, November 30
What do you think about the assigned books for the course? Which one do you find most and least helpful, and why? How have they helped you in the course, or if they haven't, why not? As a student, would you recommend that I assign these books again for my class in the spring?
Saturday, November 12
Write an argument persuading the instructor (me) that I should cancel class next Friday, instead of introducing the revision assignment. If I find enough of the arguments persuasive, I will cancel class. (Arguments will be judged solely on the basis of whether I find them persuasive.)
Monday, November 7Evaluate your work in the course so far. How do you think your writing has improved? Where are you struggling? What would you like to work on, or learn about, that we haven't discussed yet?
Wednesday, November 2
Select a print source from the library catalogue (book, journal article, map, etc.) that could be useful to you for the current paper or for your own interests. Take a friend with you to the library where the book is kept, and have your friend time you while you do the following: look up the book's call number and location; go and find the book; bring it back to the desk; and check it out. Your blog post should recount the experience and reflect on how it went, and of course, how long it took.
Wednesday, October 26
How have you been organizing and keeping track of the information you're gathering? How have your views on your topic changed since you started investigating?
Wednesday, October 19
Free topic: write about something that's been on your mind lately.
Friday, October 14
Take the description of your room that you wrote-for-five last Friday, and extend it to 300 words. Revise the description so that it creates some kind of mood for the reader: homey/comforting, funny, intriguing, sad, disgusting, terrifying, or whatever you want. Enjoy.
Friday, October 7Writing Exercise: Summarize the story you intend to tell in your narrative paper. The summary should be complete, and fall between 250 and 350 words.
Wednesday, October 5
Free topic: write about something that's been on your mind lately. This should not be just a stream-of-consciousness rant (unless it'll be an exceptionally good one), but a considered exploration of whatever-it-is that you're writing about. Have fun.
Wednesday, September 28
How has the paper been going? What have you found easy or challenging? How has writing this paper been different from writing the evaluation? (Feel free to complain if you want to.)
Friday, September 23
Revise your personal page to be more informative, more interesting, and/or more representative of your personality and ideas. If your page is already expanded and informative, rewrite text, reconsider pictures, rearrange things, add quotes, links, videos, etc. (if you want, you can even make it more concise). If your page is brief and simple, expand and elaborate it. Explore your own style and interests. Every personal page should be at least one screen-length long, and include at least one non-text item (picture, video, cartoon, link, etc.).
Thursday, September 15 (by 7 pm, so I can read them before class on Friday)
What do you think about moving all the material from the website onto the wiki? Would it make things easier for you, and if so, how? What would you like to see on the wiki, in terms of sections, pages, structure, materials, etc? What would you find helpful, or interesting? Give whatever input or ideas you want to offer.
Wednesday, September 14
Go to the Palmer Art Museum. Select a work of art that catches your attention, and examine its rhetoric. How is the artist trying to affect you, and how is he/she achieving that effect?
Friday, September 9
How has the paper been going so far? What have you found easy or challenging? How has writing this paper been different from what you’re used to?
Friday, September 2
Talk about your first two weeks of the semester. How have things been going? What has surprised you?
Monday, August 29
What is your history with writing? What have you had trouble with? What have been your strengths? What do you most want to improve in your writing, or what do you most want to learn in this course?